Searching For You
by Bad Ass Female Fighter
Summary: AU: Thorn doesn't die. The stone has a will of its' own that's for certain. She knew that the moment she laid eyes on the stone. Yet why did the stone choose her. Secrets will be revealed, friendships will be tested, but more importantly, no one can stay hidden. Mid-BotFA to Post
1. Prologue

Prologue

Emma wished that it never came to this, deceiving her friend, Thorin, and letting Bilbo take the Arkenstone to Bard and Thranduil as means to use as a bargaining chip and stop a war from breaking out between elves, dwarves and humans.

She watched at a safe distance on the ground, close to the side of the mountain, and away from the elven army...especially the Arkenstone. She knew that the Company is wondering where she is, but the stone filled her with fear whenever she was near it. Failing to understand her fear, she decided to stay as far away from it, even from her dwarven friends who may not be able to understand.

Whenever she was close to the stone, she felt herself being pulled towards it, as though it was calling her, seducing her with its magnificent shine. But the stories she heard of the stone driving the last King Under the Mountain into madness pushed her into maintaining her distance from the stone.

She watched as Bard and Thranduil rode up to the barricaded entryway to negotiate with Thorin who stood on the stone balcony with a look of stubbornness as he stared down at them and fired a warning shot with an arrow which the elven army responded by notching their arrows and aimed at the dwarves which Thranduil called off. When Bard presented Thorin with the Arkenstone, Thorin was in denial, saying that the stone is fake and that the real Arkenstone was in the mountain until Bilbo appeared and confessed that he brought the Arkenstone to Bard and Thranduil. Bilbo's confession angered Thorin to the point where he tried to kill the hobbit by pushing him over the rampart, Gandalf rushed through the army and demanded that Thorin leave Bilbo alone. Which he did as Bilbo climbed down the mountain quickly while Gandalf tried his best to persuade the three kings to work together and fight the oncoming orcs that march their way.

' _Gotta give old man Gandalf some credit for trying.'_ Emma thought to herself before feeling the ground shake with the coming of the dwarven army being led by Ironfoot, Thorin's cousin. ' _From bad to worse.'_ She thought as she stared at the dwarf army and Thorin's unreasonable cousin before directing her gaze to Thorin who has yet to find where she is. ' _Damnit Thorin, snap out of it, you said you wouldn't fall to the gold sickness yet you are breaking your word.'_ Emma thought to her friend whom she shared a close bond to.

Emma felt tremors shaking beneath her feet before seeing giant worms burst out of the earth miles away, close to Dale from her viewpoint, "Really?" she said quietly in disbelief, ' _Just great, giant birds, giant spiders and now giant worms...what's next.'_ Emma thought as wormzillas slinked back into the earth before armies of orcs marched out of the giant holes. Emma had a frown on her face as she nodded in confirmation, "Of course, bring it on." she said as she watched the dwarves charge toward the orc army and created a big shield before the elves leapt over the dwarves for a surprise attack on the orcs.

' _Finally, someone with enough sense.'_ Emma thought as she watched the elves and dwarves fight alongside each other.

Suddenly, the orc horn sounded before the other half of the orc army started making their way toward the City of Dale, ' _Oh god, the people...'_ Emma thought as dread filled her to the core for the defenceless people of Dale.

Concentrating on her magic, she focused on the highest point of Dale and teleported in cloud of white smoke.

Bilbo and Gandalf didn't see Emma, but they saw the white smoke that was her trademark magic, "Emma?" Bilbo asked, wondering where she is.

Emma appeared in a cloud of white smoke on the top of a ruined tower overlooking the city and landscape that serves as a battleground. Seeing giant trolls marching behind the orc army approaching Dale, she saw that the trolls are serving as catapults. "Oh, hell no." she said as she felt magic and adrenaline fill her being as the orcs launched giant boulders at the city. Just as the boulders were about to hit the city, Emma's magic burst out of her very being; like a ripple in a pond, her light magic expanded and enveloped the city in a barrier, blocking the impact of the boulders and crashing into the barrier instead.

Emma panted in exhaustion, but did not let her guard down lest the orcs break through. She kneeled down and settled on her knees, concentrating on her white energy visibly flowing into the barrier.

Bard and his men stopped in their tracks toward the ruined city when they saw the white semi-transparent barrier surround the city. He, his men, the elves and dwarves watched in amazement and wonder as the orc army and trolls tried again and again to break the barrier by aiming their weapons and pounding their fists on it.

The Arkenstone in Bard's breast pocket started to shake and vibrate, startling Bard and making him reach inside his pocket and take out the stone. As he held it in his hand, it continued to shake and glow brighter than it ever did before, making his eyes widen at this strange phenomenon. Before he could contemplate what's going on, his hand seared with burning pain, causing him to hiss as he dropped the Arkenstone.

The moment the Arkenstone hit the ground it shattered, it exploded, sending Bard and his men backwards and landing on the ground but otherwise, okay. The explosion released a stream of multi-colored light into the sky for all to see as it shot at incredible speed towards the city.

Emma turned her face toward the stream of light coming at the city. Her eyes widened as it got closer, almost reminding her of a meteor coming to destroy life. But she would not have it, with determination, she shot more of her magic into the barrier to make it stronger in order to stop the incoming light.

However, the moment the Arkenstone's light hit the wall of the barrier, it went through said barrier and towards Emma. In an attempt to protect herself from this foreign light, she shot her magic at it, but it didn't seem to have an effect on it at all.

The moment the light got to her, it began to surround her in a hurricane dome, blocking her from anyone that would have any intention of coming near her. Emma looked around in a state of panic as the wind whipped her hair around. Emma tried to summon her magic to this light away from her, but her magic was neutralized by whatever this light was. Emma looked down at her hands as this light's magic began to flow into her body. She fell to her knees, overwhelmed as the power began to merge with her's. Emma tried to breathe as this newfound surge of magic became too much for her heart and soul to handle.

Once the last of the Arkenstone's light completely merged with her's, she shot up into the sky, breaking the barrier on her way up. Making everyone, orc, elf, dwarf, human, hobbit and wizard look up at Emma's shining light as she floated several miles above the city. Emma stared down at the battle as she regarded everyone below her with indifference, the Arkenstone's power altering her personality slightly, but not taking her over completely.

Azog glared at the light magic practitioner with hatred for a long moment before shouting an orc command to fire their spears and arrows at Emma, to which they did as they fired a flurry of spears and arrows upon Emma.

However, when the projectiles were but a foot away from their target, they froze in their place, being held in mid-air by unknown forces.

Emma's indifferent expression didn't change, yet she and her magic began to glow brighter. In an explosion of white and multi-colored light, her magic burst out of her, forcing the people below to shield their eyes to avoid blindness. Like a violent wave in an ocean, her magic spread out at rapid speed, washing her magic over the battlefield and turning the orcs and cave trolls into dust as her light magic touched them.

When the light magic touched the humans, elves and dwarves, they felt a sense of calm and relief, but also sadness.

After the light dissipated, everyone uncovered their eyes to see that all the orcs have vanished into nothing. Looking up at the sky where Emma once was, the Hobbit saw that she was nowhere in sight.

A tear slid down Bilbo's cheek, knowing that one of his dearest friends are gone.

* * *

 _ **I didn't know how else to end this chapter. But just to let you know, this is NOT the end. This story will have flashbacks that will explain some certain aspects of the story. The flashbacks will appear at random.**_

 _ **Hope you love this; review, fav and follow if you like this.**_


	2. Knock Knock

_One year later_

Bilbo sat in his chair in front of the fireplace that blazed with embers and fire. He held a cup of tea in his hands as he stared at the fire that reminds him of the dragon he and the company faced.

Today was the one year anniversary of when the dwarves took back Erebor...yet it was also the day in which their friend, Emma Swan, vanished.

On that day when the orc army was obliterated by the Magic Practitioner, the gold sickness that Thorin was under was broken. Bilbo remembered the look on Thorin's face when he realized Emma was gone, it was the face of one who wanted so desperately to wake up from a nightmare. Bilbo mind went back to the moment where Thorin cried out Emma's name and fell to his knees in anguish and regret.

What happened after became a blur for Bilbo, but he did recall the three kings negotiating the sum of the Mountain's treasure. The Elf King was given back the white gems and Bard was given his share of the treasure to restore the City of Dale. So they left on, sort of, good terms. But Thorin held sadness within him because he related very closely with Emma because she wanted to go back to her home as much as him. To lose someone he was close to impacted him greatly.

In that one year, things began to change, Thorin decided to repair relations between the dwarves and elves in order to restore good-will between them. Every time Thorin looks at a piece of gold, bitterness fills him knowing that the Mountain's treasure one of the main reason why Emma disappeared. Bilbo, Gandalf, the company, the Lake-Towners, and that redhead elf from Mirkwood mourned her because she sacrificed her life for everyone.

In honor of her sacrifice: the elves, the dwarves and humans crafted a statue of Emma. Her statue stood in the center of Dale as a sign of where Emma last stood and as a mark of where elves, dwarves and humans joined to mourn. The three kings agreed to name that one day, "The Day of the Swan", as a way to remember her and mark her history.

As for Bilbo, he went back home with Gandalf traveling with him most of the way. The journey home was filled with endless talk between the two friends. Bilbo asked Gandalf if Emma was still alive, but Gandalf merely had a grim look on his face answering him that no one knows.

 _*Knock, Knock, Knock*_

The sound of the door startled Bilbo out of his thoughts. He looked in the direction of where the front door is, getting a sense of deja vu.

 _*Knock, Knock, Knock*_

The knock sounded again, making him spring to his feet and dash quietly to the door and flung it open, expecting them to be Gandalf or the Dwarves. But what greeted him was someone who he never seen before yet seemed familiar.

It was a young boy, no older than sixteen years of age, brown hair and hazel eyes that were similar to that of Emma's. His attire consisted of brown boots, lighter brown trousers, a brown tunic with a long sleeved shirt underneath and a dark cloak around his shoulders. Carrying a sack over his shoulder.

The boy then spoke, "Hello, my name is Henry Mills. I'm sorry to disturb your evening, but I'm hoping if you could help me." He spoke with a hint of an accent that sounded a little Irish.

Bilbo straightened himself and politely answered like a gracious host, "Um, how may I be of assistance?"

Henry sighed in relief, "I'm actually here looking for someone." He said as he dug underneath his shirt and pulled out a circular locket with a swan in the middle. Pulling the locket over his head he opened the locket and showed the picture to Bilbo. Bilbo's felt his heart jolt the moment he got a good look at the picture inside; the picture showed a blonde woman with her arms around the younger version of the boy who looked about 11. Both were smiling joyously in the picture.

Bilbo's heart hammered when he recognized the woman in the picture, "W-who is she exactly?" Bilbo stammered out looking back up to Henry.

Henry answered right away, "She's my birth Mother."

Bilbo's mind went back to the one conversation he had with Emma.

 _Bilbo walked around Bard's house, looking around for Thorin. Walking into the living, he saw Emma sitting by the window, looking out at the cold landscape with a forlorn expression, holding a swan pendant that hung from her neck._

 _Forgetting his task to look for Thorin, he made his way to where Emma is and stood opposite of her and stared out the window with her. After a moment, he looked back at Emma who continued to stare outside with a far away look._

 _Before he could stop himself, "Do you want to talk about it?" 'Smooth Bilbo, really smooth.' He berated himself for speaking without thinking._

 _Emma didn't say anything at first, Bilbo thought that she was ignoring him, before he could think about leaving, she spoke, "The dwarves are but a city away from their home while I am a world apart from my son." She said, trying to prevent herself from crying._

 _Bilbo thought he heard wrong, "S-son?" He asked stupidly._

 _Emma smiled fondly as she thought of her little boy, "His name is Henry, he was fourteen last I saw him." She smiled sadly now, "I finally realized that I missed another one of his birthdays." She said, struggling to keep her emotions in check._

 _Bilbo felt his heart break for this woman. Curiously, he asked, "What happened?"_

 _Emma sniffed before answering, "I was separated from him...again. We were finally getting our happily ever after, yet I was forced away from him and thrown into that forest. We don't know where the other is now." Her voice cracked as she hiccupped._

 _She turned to face Bilbo who had unshed tears shining in his eyes, "I don't know how long I was in that dungeon before you came along, but I thank you. For that, you have my debt of gratitude." She finished as she looked at the hobbit. "That kind of courage is very rare, especially in the most unlikely people."_

 _Bilbo didn't know how to respond to Emma's praise, looking down at his feet before looking back up, he replied, "Well, it was nothing, if I didn't let you out, I probably would've regretted it for the rest of my existence." Emma smiled at his humbleness._

 _Wanting to give her hope he added, "Something tells me that you will find you way back to your son. Seeing how you demonstrate the same type of stubbornness the dwarves often show, you will definitely succeed." He smiled before realizing that might have insulted her, "N-n-not that you're like a dwarf, far from it, you're too beautiful to be one...I-I-I mean..." Bilbo stumbled over his words to right himself, but ended up looking down and turning red in the process._

 _Emma's chuckle broke him out of his thoughts, making him look up at her to see her smiling at him, to which he returned despite his embarrassment._

 _That was the first real conversation where they bonded with each other and established their friendship._

Back in the present, Bilbo blinked as he looked at Henry much more clearly and saw certain attributes that resemble his dear friend.

"Y-y-you're Emma's son?" He asked in a low whisper.

Henry's eyes brightened, "You know her?" He asked with hope in his eyes.

Bilbo poked his head out and looked from side to side to see if there's anyone out and about this night before staring directly at Henry and stepped aside, "Come inside, we have much to discuss." He gestured for Henry to enter to which he did. Stepping into the hobbit hole, Bilbo closed the door behind him.

Henry looked around, "Nice place you got here." He commented.

Bilbo smiled at the boy, "Thank you. Forgive me, I didn't introduce myself. My name is Bilbo Baggins."

Henry smiled in kind, "Pleased to meet you. Where can we talk?"

* * *

 _ **More to come. Review if this fills you with excitement.**_


	3. Another Unexpected Journey

Placing a cup of tea in front of Henry, Bilbo sat across from Henry who took a sip of the tea and appreciated the taste, "This is delicious."

Bilbo smiled at the compliment, "Thank you. Mother's special brew." Bilbo said, crediting his Mother.

Henry nodded as he placed his tea down, "Yeah, speaking of Mothers..." He began before staring directly at the hobbit, "...tell me what happened to mine. I need to know where she is."

Bilbo sighed, knowing that this is going to be hard to tell the boy who Emma spoke fondly of. Taking a deep breath, Bilbo explained as best as he could, "I don't know where to begin. It happened so fast that it makes it so hard to relive." He smiled sadly, "That day was so terrifying, yet so magical that she left her mark unintentionally." He said remembering that day where light shined on what seemed to be the darkest of days.

Henry pressed, "What happened?" He asked, wanting to know what happened to his Mother.

Bilbo sighed through his nose before answering, "I don't know, all I remember was your Mother creating a magic barrier to protect the city. Then a very powerful light that flew to her like a falling star." He paused and took a deep breath, trying to figure out how to explain this next part to Henry, "Then there was this powerful being that obliterated an entire army of orcs."

Henry was confused, "W-what are you saying?"

Bilbo clarified his last statement, " _Your Mother_ became something else, she became this..." He struggled to find the right word, "...I-I-I don't know how to explain it, but she flew above the city and had this strange light surrounding her, she became this powerful sorceress that stopped the battle before it could actually begin. She became this very bright light and turned the orcs into dust."

The picture that Bilbo created for Henry surprised him just a little. Of course he knew that his Mother was one of the most powerful light Magic Practitioners in their world. But another light falling for Emma? That just raises more questions, most where Bilbo won't be able to answer. However, there is one that he could.

"What happened after?" He asked, wanting to know what happened next.

This was the part where Bilbo was most uncomfortable talking about. With a heavy sigh, he looked down at his interlocked hands and shook his head, "I don't know. She disappeared; vanished without a trace after the battle." He said regretfully before looking up at Henry.

Henry shook his head, denial clear in his face, "No...no it can't be...she can't be dead."

Bilbo shook his head, "I never said that Henry. No one knows where she is."

Henry shook his head, "Somebody's gotta, she's out there somewhere, she has to be." He said with desperation, "If she became as powerful as you described her, then she _has_ to be alive."

Bilbo could see how much the boy is like his Mother when they cling on to something they're after. "It's a big world out there Henry, how do you hope to find her?" He asked incredulously, wanting to know the lengths this boy would go to in order to find his Mother.

Henry didn't say anything, instead, he stood up and opened his tunic to retrieve something from his breast pocket and pulled out a folded piece of paper. Unfolding said paper revealed a map of Middle Earth and laid it on the table and looked at Bilbo expectantly, "Show me the last place you last saw her."

Bilbo blinked, "Sorry what?"

Henry elaborated, "I need you to show me on the map where she was last seen."

Bilbo held up a hand and proceeded to push off his chair, "Hold on, what will you do after I point to the spot the map?" He asked incredulously as he stood up.

"I'm gonna look for her." Henry answered like it was obvious.

"And what will you do _when_ you arrive at that place?" asked Bilbo who was already finding this kid reckless for doing without thinking.

Henry explained, "Look for traces of her; a scarf, a cloak, something that could help me locate her."

Bilbo felt lost, "Scarf? Cloak?" He asked.

Henry fished another necklace he had underneath his shirt and held a blue crystal vial that contain some sort of liquid. Bilbo stared at the blue vial with curiosity, "What is that?"

Henry explained, "A locator spell. It has to be sprinkled on the object belonging to the person and the object will lead me to that person." He placed the vial back under his shirt securely and said, "However, my Mother was unable to leave anything behind for me to find her."

Bilbo had an impressed look on his face and pointed at Henry, "Smart. Always thinking ahead, like your Mother." He said without thinking.

"Thank you." Henry smiled before sobering, "Can you show me where my Mother was last seen?" He asked again.

Bilbo pulled his hand back and moved around the table to Henry's side, "Ah, right, yes." He said as he looked at the map of Middle Earth. Scanning the map, his eyes roamed over Erebor and pointed to the space below the Lonely Mountain, "The city of Dale is at the foot of the mountain, there's a statue of Emma in the center of the City where she last stood." He said looking up at Henry who nodded, optimistically saying, "Doesn't look far."

Bilbo seems to be giving him incredulous looks lately, "You _realize_ that it is a long journey to the city of Dale right? It takes at least two months to get from here to there." He said exasperatedly.

"Well then I have no time to lose." Henry said as he folded up the ap and stuffed it back in his breast pocket and picked up his sack before turning in the direction of the door.

Bilbo's eyes widened, "What?" He exclaimed before chasing after the boy, "You mean you're leaving right now?"

Henry continued walking, "You said that it was a two month journey right? So I might as well get started." He made it to the door, but before he could open it, Bilbo slammed himself against the door and blocked his exit.

Bilbo began to scold Henry, "Now you listen here," he pointed at the door behind him, "it is _very_ dangerous out there, especially at night where orcs, goblins and wargs are at their most deadliest. Seeing how I've been on that journey and thought I'd never come back to my hobbit hole in one piece, I do not think you are ready for that kind of journey just yet. What's more, you don't have a sword."

Henry took out a pen that was inside his boot and pressed the push button and it magically extended into a sword.

Bilbo was silent as he saw the object transform into a sword before saying, "You're well prepared I see."

Henry smirked before pressing a button on the hilt and turned it back into its pen form before placing it back in his boot, "I prefer to travel light anyway. So will you please excuse me?" Henry asked.

Bilbo denied him, "I'm afraid I can't do that. Look, I know you want to find your Mother, but going out blindly in the dark will not accomplish anything."

Before Henry could retort, Bilbo held up a hand to stop him from talking, "At least until morning."

"Pardon?" Henry asked.

Bilbo explained, "I have a spare room that you can spend the night in and get some decent rest. A spot of breakfast in the morning and then you can be on your way." He finished his proposal lowering his hand.

Henry thought about it than asked, "Why are you doing this?"

Bilbo answered, "Because you're the son of one of my dearest friends. It's important that I make sure that you are well taken care of." He paused before adding, "Besides, your Mother would most likely kill me for allowing you to go off in the middle of the night where danger lurks." He said with a hint of fear as he thought of what Emma would do to him for letting her son do something reckless under his supervision.

Henry laughed at that and said, "You're probably right." He nodded, "Alright, I'll stay for tonight."

Bilbo smiled, "Wonderful, right this way then." He said directing Henry to the guest bedroom he will be sleeping in tonight.

 _In the morning_

Bilbo yawned as he got out of bed and made his way to the kitchen to make breakfast for both him and Henry. Putting the sizzling bacon to join the sausage and eggs on the second plate, he decided to bring breakfast to the sleeping boy.

Knocking on the guest bedroom door, he announced, "Henry, I've got breakfast for you."

Silence met his words, which caused him to worry, "Henry, are you alright in there?" He knocked again before opening the door just a crack and peeking in, "Henry?"

What met his eyes was an empty room, the bed freshly made. But what stood out to him was a parchment of paper on the bed. Stepping into the room, he walked over to the bedside table and placed the plate of breakfast down before picking up the parchment and sitting on the bed and reading it.

 _ **Dear Mr. Baggins,**_

 _ **If you're reading this, then I have already left the Shire by now. I'm sorry that I didn't give you a proper goodbye, but I need to find my Mother. The information you've given me is more than enough to help me on my journey, and I can not thank you enough for that.**_

 _ **Sincerely,**_

 _ **Henry**_

Bilbo lowered the letter with a sigh and stared ahead as he thought of that boy. He wasn't sure if letting the boy out on his own is a good idea. Henry is still so young, too young to be on his own.

His mind wandered back to Gandalf who he traveled back to the Shire with.

 _On the road back to the Shire, Bilbo and Gandalf talked as they journeyed back._

 _Bilbo's thoughts always returned to Emma Swan, he worried about her, wondering if she was okay._

 _Gandalf noticed the hobbit's sad expression and asked, "Everything alright Bilbo?"_

 _Bilbo looked up at the wizard, "Hm? Oh, I'm fine, really I am." He lied._

 _The look Gandalf gave him basically said, 'I know you're lying, so suck it up and tell the truth.'_

 _Bilbo caved in at that look and confessed, "I'm worried about Emma." he said, turning his face back to the road ahead._

 _Gandalf nodded, "Ah, the Magic Practitioner." He chuckled, "Probably by far the greatest sorcerous this world has ever seen." He said, praising the woman of magical capabilities._

 _Bilbo turned to Gandalf, "Do you think she'll ever come back?" He asked._

 _Gandalf remained silent, not sure how to answer that, "Well, er, I'm not sure. She might." He said, hoping that this would lift Bilbo's spirits._

 _Bilbo didn't respond, he merely nodded sadly, knowing that it's probably a lost cause._

 _In an attempt to reassure his hobbit friend, Gandalf added, "Yet something tells me that she is alright."_

 _This caught Bilbo's attention, "How do you know that?" He asked, not really believing the wizard._

 _Gandalf smiled cunningly at Bilbo, "Wizard's intuition." He said, causing Bilbo to smile somewhat._

 _Gandalf decided to change the subject, "So then, do you think you will go on another adventure sometime in the future?" He asked, eyeing the hobbit in question._

" _Hm? Well...I'm not sure." Bilbo shrugged, "I'll just have to wait for another wizard to push me out the door." He said, causing the two of them to laugh and smile as they continued on their journey to the Shire._

Bilbo couldn't help but wonder if the boy would make it on his own. Digging in his pocket, he pulled out his magic ring, the one thing that has helped him survive on his last adventure. Sure the boy has a magic sword and potion on him, but can he make it.

Bilbo stared at the ring before leaning back and letting out a breath, staring in front of himself, "I must be out of my mind." Was all he said before bounding to his hairy feet and bounding out of the room before backtracking to the breakfast he left on the table and basically inhaled the food on the plate before running around the house to pack the essentials; food, clothes and weapons.

Slipping on his pack he ran out the door and locked it before sprinting down the same path out of the Shire and after Henry.

"Bilbo, what are you doing?" An old hobbit asked as Bilbo who continued running said, "Can't talk, going on another adventure!" He exclaimed as he ran, needing to catch up to Henry.

* * *

 _ **I like this one. Hope you enjoyed the interaction between them.**_


	4. Catching Up and an Old Enemy

Henry walked through the forest as he left the Shire. He woke up that morning as the sun peeked over the hills and quickly snuck out to head east where the city of Dale is. He knew that leaving without giving Bilbo a proper goodbye was wrong, but he needed to find his Mother.

As Henry continued walking, he adjusted the sack on his shoulder which was already aching. What he wouldn't give to have a horse at this point, even though he lacked the experience in riding.

"Henry...Henry!" A voice echoed behind him, causing him to turn around and see the hobbit, Bilbo struggling to catch up to him.

"Mr. Baggins?" Henry asked as he stopped walking to face the hobbit in surprise, "What are you doing here?" He asked as Bilbo stopped in front of him and rested his hands on his knees to catch his breath.

"I'm *pant* going *pant* with you." Bilbo answered between breaths.

"Excuse me?" Henry asked, not understanding what the hobbit just said, but judging from the pack on Bilbo's back, the answer was obvious.

Once Bilbo's breath was even, he said, "A certain wizard asked if I would be going on another adventure some day, and I said that I would wait for another wizard to push me out the door to make me go." Bilbo took a breath, "Since you have a potion and are the son of a Magic Practitioner, you're the second wizard that's giving me another adventure." He added with a smile, waiting to see Henry's expression.

Henry had a mildly surprised look and said, "First of all, I'm not pushing you into an adventure. Secondly, I'm an amature when it comes to handling magic." He said before adding, "Most of this stuff belongs to my two Moms and the fairies." He jostled his sack as an indication.

The last statement caught Bilbo by surprise, "Two Moms?" He asked.

Henry answered, "My adoptive Mother and my birth Mother, they studied spells together. The pensword is my birth Mother's invention." He smiled with pride when mentioning his Mom's accomplishment.

Bilbo nodded in understanding, "Okay then." He said before going back to the subject at hand, "Now, you may not be the one pushing me out, but you are pushing yourself to find Emma and that is something I should've done long ago." He explained before adding, "You don't look like it, but you need adult supervision."

Henry felt a little offended, "I'm not a little kid." He said in defence.

"Maybe not, but you might as well admit that you need a guide to help you get to Dale. I believe that's what your Mother would at least want for you." Bilbo said, hoping that his presence on this journey would be of some value to him.

Henry's breath caught in his throat when he mentioned his Mother, she said it herself that she wants him to be safe no matter what. The hobbit did have a point, he's on his own out here in the wilderness with no way of knowing where he was going, with only a compass that his Mother snagged on one of her journeys.

Bilbo could see that Henry was hesitant to answer, "So, what do you say?" Bilbo asked, holding a hand out.

Henry stared at Bilbo's hand and chuckled a little, "High risk of certain death, slight chance of success? What are we standing around for?" Henry said before shaking Bilbo's hand who smiled, "Alright then, let's go." He said before the two of them walked side by side down the path to Dale.

Henry started up a conversation, "So can you tell me what the journey to the mountain was like?"

Bilbo began to think and said, "Well, it's a long story."

Henry countered, "Well this is a long journey." He said with a smile.

Bilbo laughed, "I do believe you have a point." He paused, not sure how to begin before he told the story, "I was out on my porch when this wizard..."

And so began their journey to the Lonely Mountain.

* * *

 _Somewhere in the ruins of Dol Guldur_

A woman in a floor length, long sleeved black dress walked around the fortress with pride and authority. Her dark hair blew in wind that came in the dreary fortress as she walked into what used to be a throne room.

Hearing heavy footsteps approaching the throne room, she turned to see the pale orc walk in with an angry expression before stopping in front of her.

She regarded the pale orc with authority as she looked at him with her blue eyes, "Well, where is he?" She asked impatiently.

The pale orc glared, "The boy is no longer with his family." He snarled.

The woman growled, "What?!" She asked angrily, "How could that brat slip through your fingers?!" Her magic dark magic flaring around her with her dark emotions.

The pale orc answered, "The boy was gone before we even got there."

The dark woman glared at the pale orc, "Find that boy, search every corner of Middle Earth if you have to; I want him _alive_!" She screeched in fury.

The pale orc stalked off to do as he was bid grudgingly as the malevolent woman turned her glare out the broken window, wanting to find the boy that will lead her to _her._


	5. 3 days later

It has been three days since Bilbo and Henry began their journey to the East. They truly knew how to get along with each other as they exchanged stories.

"I can't believe you were covered in troll snot." Henry said smiling as Bilbo filled his bowl with stew.

Bilbo smiled, "I can't believe I lived to tell the tale." He said as he filled his own bowl before they sat in front of the fire beside each other.

Henry leaned back on the log behind him and got comfortable as he stared up at the stars, "You should really write a book about your stories Mr. Baggins, everyone will love your adventures." He said turning his head towards the hobbit.

Bilbo looked at the boy in surprise before shaking his head, "Oh no, that probably wouldn't be..." He said, not really believing he could write a story.

" _Anyone_ would be lucky to hear how you and the Dwarves took back Erebor, you're adventurous and you have good sense of humor when you're not skittish." Henry said as he smiled in encouragement.

"Am I really that skittish?" Bilbo asked, somewhat offended.

"Yeah, you look like the skittish one on this journey." Henry smiled, teasing the hobbit.

Bilbo defended himself, "Hey, I'll have you know that I faced trolls, wargs, orcs, was carried by eagles, was nearly eaten alive by giant spiders and faced near incineration from a dragon. So don't tell me not to be skittish when I have every right to be right now." He said before settling himself in his blanket and stared at the stars.

Henry raised his hands in surrender, "No judgements here, Bil. I'm just saying that you have a knack for staring death in the face without fainting." He said placing his arms underneath his head.

'I probably shouldn't tell him how I fainted after reading the contract.' Bilbo thought to himself as he relaxed his sore muscles as the fire died down. For three whole days, they told each other stories, Bilbo's favorites so far were the beanstalk, Henry's battle against his great-grandfather, and the snow queen.

"Hey, Bilbo? How did my Mother seem to you before...you know?" Henry asked, turning his head to the hobbit.

Bilbo turned to Henry who stared at him in curiosity as he waited for his answer before Bilbo finally answered, "She was...concerned. She worried about the battle that was to come, but was more worried about her friends." He supplied as best as he could from what he could remember the night before she vanished.

Henry smiled at his answer, "Yeah, she always worries about other people's safety before her own." He said before sighing, "I just wished she would worry about herself for once."

Bilbo didn't say a word, 'She _did_ worry about herself.' He thought to himself as he remembered the night when he was bringing the Arkenstone to Bard.

 _Bilbo snuck around the city of Dale looking for Bard the Bowman. This was risky considering he would probably be killed the moment Thorin discovers his treachery, but he knew that this is the only possible way to stop the battle that is to come._

 _As Bilbo tip-toed his way across an alleyway, he was caught by surprise from behind and dragged him inside a ruined house. Before he could yell out in surprise and fear, he was slammed against the wall with a hand fisted in the front of his shirt, keeping him off the ground._

 _He looked up to see a familiar blonde drawing back her other fist, ready to punch before Bilbo stopped her, "Emma?" He exclaimed in fright, afraid of what she would do to him._

 _Emma stopped herself just in time before she could hurt him, "Bilbo?" She lowered Bilbo on his hairy feet and smoothed out the front of his shirt before pulling him into a hug, "What are you doing here you fool?" She pulled back, "Thorin will kill you when he finds you gone." She said looking Bilbo in the eyes in a disapproving manner._

" _I rekon something like that would happen." Bilbo shrugged._

 _Emma shook her head in disbelief at him, "Then why come here?" She asked, worried about her friend._

 _Bilbo looked around them, making sure that the place was secure enough for what Bilbo is about to show her before he pulled a cloth covered gem fro inside of his shirt, "Since Thorin will not honor his promise, maybe he'll trade the treasure for this." He said as he uncovered the Arkenstone, which gleamed with it inner light._

 _Emma felt a strange pull to the stone, but fought against it as she moved away from the stone and the hobbit that holds it. Staring at the stone with great fear as she felt an energy very foreign emanating from the Heart of the Mountain._

 _Bilbo looked up at Emma, confused at her reaction to the stone as he shifted his gaze between the two, "Emma, what's wrong?" He asked, concerned for his friend's well being as he took a step forward._

 _Emma stepped back in response as she held up a hand, making Bilbo stop in his tracks, "Bilbo,_ _ **keep**_ _that stone_ _ **away**_ _from me." She said in warning while glaring at the stone._

 _Bilbo didn't need to be told twice as he folded the Arkenstone in the cloth once more and pocketed it back in his shirt. Once the stone was out of sight, Emma breathed out a sigh of relief, as though she was suffocating, as she sat down on a chair beside a dining room table, "Thank you." She said as she leaned her head in her hands._

 _Bilbo slowly approached her, cautious of the proximity of the stone and Emma. When he was a couple feet away from her, he asked, "Emma, are you okay?"_

 _Still with her head in her hands, she answered, "I'm not sure." still recovering from the stone's energy as she looked at Bilbo, "Bilbo, there's something wrong with that stone." She said as she eyed the spot where the stone is wearily._

 _Bilbo looked down at where she was looking before looking back at her._

 _Emma continued, "Bilbo, whatever that stone is, and how it came to be is beyond me...but if that thing is powerful enough to corrupt Thorin's mind then I can sure as hell tell you that it is making me sick feeling its energy." She said as she struggled to get out of the chair and looked down at Bilbo with a tired expression, "You better hope that the stone will be enough to stop this battle from happening, because I want to be as far away from that stone as possible."_

 _Bilbo began, "Emma-"_

" _Bard is this way." Emma interrupted as she made her way out the door, her dark blue cloak flowing behind her in her haste. Leaving Bilbo with little choice but to follow her hurried steps._

 _When the golden tent that shelters the leaders and wizard came into view, Emma stopped abruptly with Bilbo nearly crashing behind her as she pointed at the tent, "Bard, the Elven King and Gandalf are in there. Good luck." She said before departing._

 _Bilbo turned to say something to Emma, but she was already gone._

That was the first time Bilbo ever saw Emma being truly scared.

The hobbit turned to look at Henry to see that he has turned on his side away from Bilbo and was already asleep.

Bilbo knows that this journey of theirs will be long, and that Henry will want to discover the details of his Mother's journey in Middle Earth. However, he couldn't shake the feeling that something dangerous and wicked is coming.

Bilbo began to relax as he drifted off to sleep, completely unaware of the murderous blue eyes glaring at the two as they slept.

* * *

 _ **Not my best work, but I'm mildly satisfied with this knowing that I have written the flashback.**_

 _ **However, I am happy to announce that I have passed my presentation, which basically means... I'M GRADUATING!**_

 _ **Okay I feel better now. Hope you enjoyed this chapter enough to review, favor or follow.**_


	6. Cave, Carpet and Landing

It was the middle of the day as Bilbo and Henry walked up a hill, approaching the area of what looked like housing structures but were burnt down from long ago.

"Ah, we're close to the troll statues I told you about earlier." Bilbo panted out, exhausted from this uphill part of the journey.

Henry grinned, "Really? Okay, this I gotta see." He said as he walked ahead of Bilbo who struggled to catch up to the boy, "Now wait a minute Henry, I'm not as young as I once was, so please slow down." He panted out, "Besides, the trolls aren't moving anytime soon." He said laughing at his terrible joke.

"Sorry Bilbo. I just want to see their faces and maybe draw mustaches on them while I'm at it." Henry grinned as he slowed down to match Bilbo's pace as they both laughed at the misfortune of the trolls.

Bilbo directed, "They're this way." He said, leading Henry to the clearing where the trolls were.

Henry could make out stone shapes as they walked closer to the clearing until he could clearly see the three 13 ft statues. He nodded, obviously impressed, "Nice."

Bilbo sighed, feeling nostalgic, "Yeah, the first real official monsters I came face to face with and lived." He said, making Henry snicker as he rummaged through his sack and pulled out an capped ink bottle before picking up a stick to dip into the ink.

Bilbo scolded, "This is absolutely disrespectful to their final resting place."

Henry smirked as he turned to Bilbo, "You wanna go first?" He asked holding the ink tipped stick.

"Give me a boost." Bilbo said as he took the stick and was hoisted up on Henry's shoulders as he began drawing facial hair on the statue's face.

"First time disrespecting a troll statue?" Henry asked casually holding the hobbit who was basically half his size steady on his shoulders.

"Yeah." Bilbo answered absentmindedly as he drew a unibrow.

Henry smiled, until he heard something behind them. "Timber." Was all the warning he gave before he threw themselves to the ground with 'oofs' to avoid the arrows that shot their way into the statue's nostrils.

Bilbo sat up, "What was that?" He asked, not expecting Henry to throw him off like that.

"Run!" Henry said as he grabbed Bilbo and started to run as more arrows, accompanied with the cries of orcs, were shot at them.

As they ran away from the orcs chasing them, Bilbo suddenly remembered the cave he and his company found on his last journey, "Quick, this way." He said, directing Henry in the direction to the cave.

Once Bilbo and Henry saw the mouth of the cave, they both made a mad dash towards it and ran inside where they hid.

Henry panted as from what he considered a marathon, "Think we lost 'em?" He asked the hobbit.

Said Hobbit unsheathed Sting to see that the blade is glowing, meaning that the orcs are still close. Straining his ears, he could sense that the orc pack is coming closer to the cave, "They're getting close." Bilbo whispered.

Henry looked around the treasure horde and asked, "Is there another way out?"

Bilbo shook his head, "No, not from my last visit." He said, trying to ignore the smell that hasn't left this stinkin' cave.

Something caught Henry's eye, "Bilbo?" He said getting the hobbit's attention, "Why is there a carpet in here?" He asked, eyeing the large rolled up rug leaning against the cave wall.

Bilbo shrugged, "I'm not sure. Cave trolls steal anything they can get their hands on."

Henry's face lit up as an idea came to his head, "I got an idea. Help me roll out the carpet." He said as he jogged up to said carpet.

Bilbo stood where he was with an incredulous expression, "What?" He said, not understanding Henry's thinking at the moment.

"Just help me." Henry responded, struggling with the weight of the rug as he pulled it away from the wall and had it lean against him.

Bilbo rushed to help the boy and assisted in putting the rug on the ground and proceeded to roll it out flat on the cave floor. Once it was fully rolled out, Henry stood on the 8'x11' carpet and felt it out, testing its sturdiness with his feet and nodded, "This might work."

Bilbo intervened as he stepped onto the carpet, "Henry, what's the plan exactly?"

Henry turned to Bilbo with a sheepish expression, "Just to let you know, I'm not all too sure my plan will work, but it's better to have bad ideas that no ideas."

Bilbo blinked, "Okay." was all he said before Henry continued as he pulled something from his pouch at his waist and held up a vial with dust in it, "Remember, I'm an amature at magic, but I'm taking my birth Mother's advice to think outside the box. You might wanna sit down for this next part." Henry said as he sat down facing the mouth of the cave as Bilbo followed suit.

Bilbo enquired, "Henry, _what_ exactly are we _doing_?" He asked, getting the feeling that they are about certain death.

Henry held up the vial, " _This_ is a special kind of fairy dust that helps people fly. I only use this in emergencies, so I believe that this is where it counts as an emergency." He explained as he uncapped the vial.

Bilbo was lost after 'fly,' "I know I may be a bit daft, but 'fly'?" He asked incredulously.

"Yep." Henry nodded.

Bilbo pointed at the carpet they were sitting on, "What's the carpet for then?" He asked pointedly.

Henry grinned, "Two words;" he began before sprinkling the fairy dust on the carpet, making it glow green and levitate a little off the ground, "Magic. Carpet." He said holding the front of the carpet.

Bilbo stayed stunned to silence as he scrambled to hold the front with Henry and said in a panicked voice, "We're gonna die."

Henry reassured him, "We're gonna be fine."

"We're gonna die."

"We're gonna be fine."

"We're gonna die."

"We're gonna be fine."

The carpet suddenly dropped, making Bilbo smile in relief, "Now we are." Right when he said that, five-six orcs appeared at the mouth of the cave, snarling at them.

Bilbo's face fell, "Now we're not."

Orcs began to notch their arrows with Bilbo knowing he's about to die, "We're gonna-" but before he could finish, the carpet shot out of the cave like a rocket at high speed, knocking the orcs down on their way out with Bilbo screaming, "AAAAAHHHHHHHH!" As they shot towards the sky.

Henry gripped the carpet and struggled to steer it. Once he figured it out, he was finally able to steady it as they got closer to the clouds. Letting out a breath of relief, he laughed, "That was kinda fun." He said turning to Bilbo who at this moment reminded Henry of a scared cat clinging to a tree for dear life, only difference is that he holding the front of the carpet very tightly.

"I'm gonna be sick." Bilbo said looking queasy.

"You're gonna be fine." Henry reassured the hobbit.

"I'm gonna be sick."

"You're gonna be fine."

"I'm gonna be sick."

"You're gonna be fine." Henry said in a 'that's final' tone before saying, "I'm surprised you weren't sick in that stinkin' cave." He said as he fished out his compass and steered the carpet towards the east.

Once Bilbo calmed his stomach to a manageable degree, he let out a breath and asked, "Where did you learn to do this?"

Henry didn't take his eyes off his compass or break concentration on steering the carpet, "Actually, this is the first time I've done this. So I have absolutely no idea what I'm doing right now." He answered honestly as he pocketed his compass to keep his eyes forward.

Bilbo sputtered, "What?!" He exclaimed, wishing for an experienced wizard at this moment.

"Hey, like I said, this is a bad idea. But I'm going out on a limb here saying that this is probably the faster way for us to get to our destination." Henry said grinning as their carpet continued to fly across the sky.

Bilbo curiously peeked over the edge of their ride, the height at which they flew at made him dizzy, "Henry, is there such a thing as air sickness?"

 _Elsewhere_

The pale orc glared his blue eyes at his subordinates, angry that they lost the boy...again. "How could you lose the brat?!" He snarled in rage, beyond pissed at this incompetent orc pack.

"It wasn't our fault, he wasn't alone, he had a hobbit with him." The orc explained to his superior.

This caught the pale orc's attention, "A hobbit?" He questioned.

"Yes, but the hobbit looked familiar somehow." the orc said in turn.

The pale orc didn't say anything, he merely growled as he thought of the little creature that hindered him in his quest to destroy Oakenshield, and it seems the hobbit is interfering in this quest as well.

"I've had enough with that hobbit." He growled out as he mounted his white warg and rode off to the east where he suspects the boy and the hobbit will go.

 _With Bilbo and Henry_

The magic carpet duo flew across the sky most of the day, and it was close to sun down.

Bilbo yawned, "Are you tired?" He asked Henry who has been steering the carpet since the troll cave.

Henry fought back a yawn, "No, I'm not tired at all. 'Sides, this is easy for me." He said, smiling tiredly.

Bilbo smiled before something in the distance caught his eyes, "Henry, look." He said pointing at something in the distance.

Henry followed his finger to see a mountain in the distance, "The Lonely Mountain." Bilbo said smiling proudly.

Henry grinned excitedly, "This is perfect, Bilbo. At this rate, we'll be there by morning."

The carpet jerked suddenly, causing the hobbit and the boy to stumble before it went steady again, but seemed to have lowered, "Henry, what are you doing?" Bilbo questioned, his stomach dropping from the ride.

"That wasn't me." Henry exclaimed, wondering what happened as well before the carpet jerked again.

Bilbo then realized, "Henry, how long does that special fairy dust last?" He asked, starting to panic.

Henry's eyes widened and laughed sheepishly, "Well, you see, the thing about fairy dust, it was supposed to-I have no clue." He said, his voice cracking in anxiety.

The jerking stopped, along with the carpet which hung in mid air, not moving forward...until it decided to drop.

"AAAAAHHHHHHH!" Bilbo and Henry screamed as they descended from the sky on their now unmagical carpet and toward a forest.

"Mayde! Mayde! We're going down!" Henry yelled as he tried to maneuver the carpet to take a softer landing. The moment they were about to reach the top of the trees, Henry yelled again, "I know we don't have a choice, but thank you for flying Magic Carpet Air!" He said as he & Bilbo braced themselves for impact.

They broke through the top of the trees and tore through leaves and branches where Henry used his arm to shield his face from the debris that they crashed through. When they finally made contact with the ground, they tumbled forward and rolled until crashed into a fallen tree where Henry ended up with his back on the ground and his legs against the tree and Bilbo flat face on the ground.

Groaning, Henry stared up at the trees as he laid on his back, "So much for that." He turned his head to Bilbo, wincing from the pain as he regarded the hobbit, "You alive?"

"Not really." Bilbo said, his voice muffled by the ground before lifting his head from the ground and faced Henry.

"Could've been worse." Henry said grinning weakly before arrows appeared above them, pointed at them.

"Yes it could." Bilbo said, laying his head back on the ground, wanting to rest.

Henry raised his numb arm and waved at the warriors staring down at them and aiming their arrows at him and Bilbo and simply said, "Hello."

* * *

 _ **I consider this one my favorite. I find myself struggling to not laugh at the dynamics between these two. I truly hope that you laughed as you read this. Leave a review and tell me what was your favorite moment in this chapter.**_


	7. Meeting with the Elvenking

Henry stared at the arrows pointed at him and said, "Alright, I'm getting up." He said as he moved to lift his legs off the fallen tree, groaning from the sore feelings in his legs for kneeling on a flying carpet for hours. "Just don't rush me please." He groaned out as he tilted his legs up and to the left and laid them on the ground, making him lay on his side. Pushing off the ground, his body protested at the movement as he grunted, "Okay, one second." He said finally rising to his feet but bending over and breathing heavily.

Bilbo rose from the ground, his body making the same protests as he gasped at the pain his body took from the landing, "How are you feeling?" He said looking at Henry who remained bent over.

Henry responded by holding up a finger telling Bilbo to give him a moment before placing his hands against his lower back and- *CCCCCRRRRRRAAAAACCCCKKK!* sounded loudly in the forest as he popped and cracked the joints along his spine.

Henry shuddered at the after effect, "So much better." He said smiling pleasantly before looking at Bilbo who had an uncomfortable and disgusted look on his face.

"What's wrong?" Henry asked, not understanding Bilbo's expression.

"That was absolutely the most unpleasant sound I've ever heard." Bilbo said shuddering in disgust as he recalled the sound Henry's back made.

"Wait until you're old and cracking your joints every morning, afternoon and night." Henry said in response.

"At least I won't do it in front of people." Bilbo fired back as he looked at Henry disapprovingly.

*Cough Cough*

Henry and Bilbo stopped their banter to turn to the archers who have lowered their arrows but kept them notched.

"Oh right, sorry." Henry said feeling a little sheepish for ignoring them. Looking at the archers closely, he realized that these people were elves. From what Bilbo told him about his and dwarves' journey, that the elves of Mirkwood captured the dwarves and imprisoned them.

One of them stepped forward, he had deep blue eyes and pale blonde hair. He stared at the boy long and hard, as though he was looking for something that was recognizable before turning to the hobbit and immediately recognizing said hobbit, "Bilbo Baggins."

Bilbo blinked, "Sorry, what?" He said before widening his eyes when he finally recognized the elf, "Oh it's you." He smiled nervously, "Is that a good thing?"

The blonde elf smiled dryly, "We'll see. This is the second time you've trespassed in our forest."

Bilbo laughed sheepishly, "Well, you see-"

Henry interrupted, "Pardon me, but this was my fault, I didn't land us in the right spot." He said, taking the blame.

The blonde elf smirked nodded, "I saw you landing." He said turning to the heap of a carpet that was several feet behind him, "Not the most graceful." He commented.

"Well I haven't done something like that before. Next time you do the landing." Henry said to the blonde elf as he rubbed the soreness out of his arms.

Bilbo held up his hands at Henry, "Oh no, there's not gonna be a next time, I am keeping my hairy feet on the ground where it belongs from now on."

Henry responded with a nod that basically said, 'Yeah, whatever.'

The blonde elf coughed to get their attention, "If you two are done, we need to leave before giant spiders arrive." He said, warning them of the dangers of Mirkwood.

Remembering his last skirmish with the spiders terrified Bilbo enough to rush the boy along, "Right, let's go Henry." He said urgently as he dragged Henry by the arm in the direction the elves escorted them along.

Mirkwood

Bilbo fidgeted as he and Henry walked the narrow path to the Elvenking's throne. In all honesty, Bilbo was hoping to avoid coming into Mirkwood seeing how Thranduil doesn't seem as fond of him for helping the dwarves to escape.

Henry noticed Bilbo's discomfort, "You okay Bilbo?" He asked, wondering what was wrong with the hobbit.

Bilbo answered, "Oh, nothing, aside from man-eating spiders I am much more afraid of the Elvenking at this moment." He said quietly, even though the elves, especially the blonde who walked in front of them, could hear the exchange between the two odd travelers.

Henry, being the ever clever boy he is, guessed, "Let me guess, he's still mad at you for stealing the keys to the dungeon and letting the dwarves escape." He said in a casual tone as though it was nothing.

"Spot on." Bilbo confirmed, knowing the boy is correct in his assumption.

"I win." Henry said jokingly with a hint of a smirk on his face.

Bilbo shook his head at the boy before realizing that they were now at the foot of the King's throne. On the throne sat King Thranduil himself who stared down at them with indifference as Bilbo looked like he wanted to run while Henry bowed at the waist in greeting and respect to royalty before straightening to his height.

Thranduil addressed the hobbit, "So you finally decided to return." He said, looking at the hobbit.

Bilbo struggled to explain himself, "We were only passing through, Your Majesty." He explained as best as he could without panicking.

Thranduil raised one of his brows, "And why were you and your friend trespassing?" He enquired averting his eyes to Henry.

Henry raised his hand, "That would be my fault, Your Highness. I dropped us at the wrong place at the wrong time, sorry." Henry explained rubbing the back of his neck in embarrassment when he thought of how he and Bilbo 'dropped in.'

Thranduil became intrigued, "Dropped?"

Henry smiled nervously, "Yeah. Would you believe me if I said that we came here on a magic carpet?" He asked dropping his hand.

"Probably not." Thranduil answered without a second thought.

The blonde elf stepped forward, "It's true, my King. Our scouting party witnessed their landing." He said, vouching for the boy and the hobbit.

Thranduil regarded his son with questioning eyes, "Are you certain?"

The blonde elf, the King's son, nodded, "Aye."

Thranduil turned his gaze back to the two travelers, "Yet why were you two traveling over Mirkwood in the first place?" He asked, wanting to know the destination to which these two are headed and if he should be concerned.

Henry answered without reserve, "Also my fault, we were traveling to the City of Dale, Your Majesty." He said with a straight back.

"For what purpose?" Thranduil asked further.

"To find my Mother." Henry said, his eyes looking down for a second before looking back at the Elvenking.

"And who is your Mother?" Thranduil asked his final question.

"Emma Swan." Henry answered with a hint of pride, making the Elvenking's and his son's eyes widen in recognition of the name.

Thranduil became silent, which made Bilbo even more uncomfortable knowing that he also freed Emma from Mirkwood's dungeons. Still remaining silent, Thranduil rose from his throne gracefully and slowly walked down the steps until he was on the platform, staring at Henry who was trying not break eye contact with the King. Once the King was standing directly in front of the boy, his eyes scanned the boy's facial features, noticing the subtle resemblance to the woman whom he imprisoned before the dwarves came to Mirkwood.

"You're Emma's son?" Thranduil asked, finding it hard to believe that the son of the Savior is standing in front of him.

Henry nodded, "Yes sir. My name is Henry." He answered with discomfort at seeing how small he felt with the King in front of him who stood a head taller than him.

Henry gulped before asking, "How do you know my Mother?"

Thranduil stepped away from the boy to give him some space before answering, "She was my prisoner here." He said, feeling bad that he had to say that to the boy.

Henry's eyes widened a bit, "What?" He asked, feeling scared of what the King could have done to his Mother while she was in captivity.

Thranduil regarded the boy who stared at him with slight anger and fear, "I never hurt your Mother if that is what you are thinking. All I've done was lock her up and gave her the necessary amount of food to drink while she was here." He explained, not wanting the boy to think he was cruel to his Mother.

"But why did you lock my Mother up, what has she done to warrant her imprisonment?" Henry asked, wanting to know why his Mother was locked up in Mirkwood in the first place.

Thranduil's mind went back to his first meeting with Emma.

Thranduil sat on his throne, watching the scouting party returned with a woman with her hands bound behind her back and a hood over her head.

 _Once the woman was dragged forth on the platform by two elven scouts, the hood was pulled off her head to reveal blonde hair and greenish-hazel eyes that looked at everything around her with fear after being being blindfolded and bound._

 _Emma stared up at Thranduil who stared back at her with contempt, not being so fond of humans and never holding them in highest regards for their single minded nature and greed._

" _What is a human doing in Mirkwood?" Thranduil demanded his scouts._

 _His son stepped forward and walked up the steps until he was at his side and whispered in his ear,_ " _ **We found her in the forest fighting off spiders, My King."**_ _he informed his Father in elvish with astonishment in his eyes._

" _ **By herself?"**_ _Thranduil asked, not really believing that a mere human could take on giant spiders by herself._

" _ **It's true, yet she didn't use weapons...she used magic."**_ _His son finished with a hint of astonishment._

 _Thranduil's eyes widened a fraction because no human in this world could wield magic unless they were Istaris. His eyes went to the blonde woman who stared back at him with courage, as though she wasn't afraid of whatever he has planned for her._

 _Wanting to see if what his son saw was true, he turned to his son and nodded at him, giving him the signal, to which his son nodded and notched his arrow and fired at the blonde woman._

 _The arrow stopped abruptly in mid air just an inch away from her face. The King and his elves stared at the display with astonishment, for not even an Istari could do such a thing. The blonde woman remained silent as the arrow floated back to the elf who shot at her until it floated in front of him in a horizontal angle. Staring at the arrow he gently took the arrow and stored it back in his quiver, looking at the blonde woman in bewilderment while doing so._

 _Thranduil sat up from his throne and walked down the steps until he stopped in front of her, examining her features as she did the same to him. Being this close to her, he could feel the magic radiating off of her, but he had a hard time determining whether or not it was dark or not._

" _What is your name?" Thranduil asked, stepping away from her._

" _Emma Swan." she answered without fear or reserve._

" _Where did your magic come from?" Thranduil asked as he circled her._

" _I was born with it." Emma answered informatively, refusing to show an ounce of fear._

" _Where did you come from?" Thranduil asked, wanting to know if there were others like her._

" _Not from here." Emma answered cleverly._

 _Thranduil asked again, "_ _Where_ _did you come from?" He asked, losing his patience as he stood in front of her again._

" _I can not tell you." Emma said, refusing to give away her homeland in order to protect her son._

 _Thranduil didn't like not knowing where this source of magic came from, "Very well, if you choose not to tell me where you came from..." He snapped his fingers and elven guards took hold of her arms and began dragged her away, "...then you can spend your days in a dungeon until you tell me." He finished as Emma was taken away._

" _Then you are going to wait for a very long time." Was the last thing she said before she was out of the king's sight._

Henry listened intently as Thranduil ended his story about when he met Emma.

The boy remained silent for a moment before turning to the blonde elf, "You shot at my Mother?" He asked incredulously.

The blonde elf defended himself, "In my defence, I was only following orders."

Henry turned back to the king, "You imprisoned her because she wouldn't tell you where she came from? You would have thought her crazy if she told you she came from an entirely different world and locked her up anyway." He said, not really finding it hard to believe that his Mother would be locked up the moment they were separated from each other.

"This forest is plagued with darkness, I couldn't take the chance that she would be one of them." Thranduil said, explaining his reasons, "I did what had to be done to protect my people."

Henry stayed quiet for a moment, "A terrible excuse...but a plausible reason that I cannot argue with. I felt that darkness when I crash landed in your forest." He said crossing his arms.

Thranduil held a question gaze, "You felt it? How?" He asked.

"I can feel it on the back of my neck." He answered quickly.

Thranduil, his son and Bilbo raised their eyebrows before Henry explained, "When you have a family, especially a Mother, who battles the forces of darkness, including witches and wizards, you develop a sixth sense." He said pointing at the back of his neck.

Everyone nodded before Thranduil remembered something Emma had done while in Mirkwood, "Henry, while your Mother was kept here in Mirkwood, she be friended one of elves, specifically the Captain of the Guard." He said, surveying Henry's reaction, seeing how he had a curious look on his face.

"Who?" Henry asked.

Thranduil answered, "The Captain of the Guard; Tauriel." Thranduil smiled, "I myself was quite surprised at the friendship those two shared. Even more so when she didn't use Tauriel as a means of escape."

Henry smiled, "My Mother is never the kind of person to deceive a friend without justification."

Thranduil nodded, "Indeed, Tauriel couldn't pull out the homeland of which your Mother came from, but she did talk about you nonstop."

Henry perked up, "Really?"

Thranduil smiled, "Yes, though I believed she called you her Sweet Little Duckling along those lines." Henry's face flared red as his face dropped and turned his head to the side with a pout of embarrassment.

Thranduil smirked, his son turned his head to fight the smile threatening to come onto his face and Bilbo snickered into his sleeve.

Henry mumbled, "There goes my dignity. I should've taken my chances with the spiders." This only cause them to laugh.

Once they were done ridiculing the boy, Thranduil continued, "Tauriel became close to your Mother, so much so that they came to trust each other with their hopes and dreams."

"What are you saying?" Henry questioned, not knowing what this has to do with his Mother.

Thranduil answered, "I'm saying, that if there is someone that your Mother trusted the most, it would be Tauriel, and Tauriel would never betray your Mother's location unless it is her son that enquires her location." He said with a smile.

Henry had a hopeful look brighten his face, "Tauriel knows where my Mother is?"

"I'm saying that there is a chance that might know." Thranduil clarified, not wanting the boy's hopes to get too high lest he be disappointed.

"'Chance' and 'maybe' is good enough for me. Where can I find her?" Henry asked, feeling energy pumping his veins.

"She resides in Dale, where you're headed. She has red hair and green eyes." He added, describing the characteristics of the former-captain.

"Okay, red hair, green eyes, elvish ears, lives in Dale." Henry listed, committing it to memory before clapping his hands together energetically, "Alright, we know where to start when we get to Dale, let's go Bilbo." He said it super fast and grabbed Bilbo by the arm and proceeded to leave.

"Woah!" Bilbo exclaimed as he dug his heels into the ground, stopping Henry in his tracks and almost tripping at the unexpected movement and turning to face the hobbit questionably.

As Henry was about to open his to speak, Bilbo held his hand up and quickly stopped him before the boy could to talk, "Now you listen to me for the next couple minutes so that you can understand me." Bilbo instructed before Henry nodded reluctantly.

Bilbo began to speak, "First of all you and I just survived an orc attack, you shot us into the air on your magic carpet where I had several heart attacks and upset stomachs up there-"

"Well you didn't vomit."

"-and I survived your carpet crash landing into the forest, I'm still sore from that by the way. What's more it's night time, meaning there are vicious giant spiders waiting to eat us alive. It's more dangerous out there now to wander in the dark." Bilbo finished his rant and waited for it to sink into the boy's head.

"I never said my ideas were good." Henry said after Bilbo finished his rant, "'Sides, I saved our lives back at that cave, plus, we didn't die when we came here. As for the spiders, all we need is another carpet." Henry said, explaining his alternative to avoid spiders.

" _Never. Gonna. Happen."_ Bilbo said as he repeated what he said back in the forest, "My feet are staying on the ground where they belong. Also, _we need rest._ " He said, trying to persuade the boy.

*Cough*

The pair turned to the elves who remained silent to enjoy the pair's comical argument, "If I may interrupt, you two can rest here until you leave in the morning after breakfast." Thranduil said, offering them a place to rest for the night. "Spend the night here, get some well needed sleep, have breakfast come morning, then you can leave for Dale." Thranduil elaborated, wanting to end this little spat and get some sleep.

Bilbo nodded before turning to Henry and said, "That does have a ring of fairness to it."

Henry looked from his traveling companion, then to the king and to the blonde elf before sighing, "I know when I have to admit defeat, alright you win."

Bilbo had to stop himself from doing a victory dance before mouthing 'Thank you' to the Elvenking which he nodded.

"Now I will not have you leaving before breakfast like you did last time." Bilbo said warning Henry not to pull that stunt again.

Henry shrugged, "I didn't know you wanted to come along." He said, defending himself.

Thranduil's son stepped forward and stood at their sides, "Allow me to show you where you two will be sleeping." He said before ushering them along the narrow pathway, "This way Mr. Baggins and Duckling." He smiled teasing Henry for having that cute nickname.

Henry pouted, "No one calls me 'Duckling' but Mom." he grumbled as Bilbo snickered at how cute Henry is being with his stubborn pout.

"By the way, my name is Legolas." The blonde elf said introducing himself as he walked them to their living quarters for the night.

 _Unknown_

Sad crystal pupils of varying bright colors stared at the crystal ball that showed Henry in Mirkwood, smiling and joking with the hobbit.

Her heart clenched at the thought of the boy finding her as she is, different and unable to be near anyone without hurting them.

Looking at the crystal ball, she saw the boy settling into bed and falling into deep sleep with a smile on his face. Her heart broke at the sight of her boy looking so peaceful but unable to reach out to him lest he be hurt in the process.

"Henry...please don't find me."

* * *

 _ **This took up ten pages, where I had fun writing. I hope you enjoyed this. Tauriel will appear in the next chapter.**_

 _ **Tell me what you think and what your favorite moment is in this chapter.**_


	8. The Road to Dale

The next day as promised, Henry and Bilbo had breakfast in the morning and were preparing to continue on with their journey to Dale.

Henry fastened his cloak around his shoulders while Bilbo packed the food the elves provided them with.

"You sure you don't want to go by carpet? It sure beats walking and it helps us avoid orcs." Henry asked, wanting to try his and in flying again.

Bilbo refused immediately, "For the third and final time, no. Walking is a gift to me while air sickness is a curse." He said closing his bag and slinging it over his shoulder.

"If you change your mind, I still got two more vials of that special fairy dust." Henry said patting the pouch containing said fairy dust.

"I'll pass, thank you." Bilbo said as he opened the door that lead out of their living quarters.

"Alright, let's hit the road." Henry said feeling energetic to go to Dale as he walked out the door with Bilbo following behind him saying, "Only this time, we're not using the carpet."

Henry stopped walking for a moment before it finally sunk in, "I see what you did there, good one." Henry laughed, praising the hobbit's joke before continuing on the pathway that would lead them out of Mirkwood.

As they walked beside each other, Henry's mind went back to the dream he's been having for the past few nights.

 **He would be in a meadow with the stars shining at night with a warm breeze and a mysterious woman in a white cloak several yards away facing away from him. At first, the woman was unrecognizable to him with her head facing his direction but kept her body facing forward away from him. But upon closer inspection, he realized that it was his Mother.**

 **With heart leaping in joy, he called out to her, but she never responded. Then panic set in when his Mother turned away from him and began walking away from him, her white cloak swishing in the breeze behind her.**

 **Not wanting his Mother to leave him, he moved his feet to run after her, "Mom, wait!" He yelled, his voice echoing in the meadow as he ran.**

 **When it looked like he was close enough to touch her cloak, his legs became hindered by a pond that appeared beneath his feet, making him sink as he struggled to get closer to his Mother.**

 **Before he sunk into the watery depths, he saw a strange symbol on the back of his Mother's cloak that had a small triangle inside a bigger triangle and inside a circle.**

 **At that point each time, he wakes up.**

He doesn't know the meaning behind his dream, but at this point, all that mattered to him was finding his Mother.

Arriving at the door leading outside of Mirkwood stood the Elvenking and Legolas waiting by the door with two horses and a pony held by guards.

Approaching the two, Henry and Bilbo bowed in respect to the duo, to which the king and prince nodded in response. "Good morning." Bilbo greeted, ready to continue their journey.

"Good morning." Thranduil returned, his son nodding in response, "You ready to go?" Legolas asked.

Bilbo and Henry replied at the same time, "We're ready."

Thranduil smiled, "Good. I hope you don't mind, but my son here will be accompanying you on your journey to Dale." he informed, placing a hand on Legolas' shoulder.

Henry stared back in surprise, "Really? You're coming with us?" he asked, looking at the elf in question.

Legolas nodded, "Yes. That won't be a problem for you I hope." he said.

Henry answered hastingly, "No, quite the opposite in fact, I have a lot of questions for you if that's okay." he said, not really minding the elf's company.

Legolas smiled, "That's fine, it will keep me from being bored." he responded, looking forward to having conversations with this witty human.

Bilbo decided to speak up, "Okay, I believe it's time we leave."

"Right, of course." Henry said before all three of them mounted their hoofed creatures and trotted through the large doors with Legolas leading them down the path towards Dale.

"We should reach the city by mid day if we keep to this path." Legolas said, looking up at the sky as he calculated the time they would arrive at the their destination.

"That's good, hopefully we won't run into any trouble." Henry said, hoping that they won't have to deal with orcs on the road.

"Yes, _hopefully_." Bilbo added, having gone on this journey to know that danger lurks around every rock with those foul creatures.

They trotted on, having conversations here and there as they continued their journey, "What was it that you wanted to ask me, Henry?" Legolas asked, glancing behind him to see Henry following closely.

Henry thought over his question before answering, "I wanted to know what happened that day you found my Mother. The forest was where she landed in, so you were the first to ever come across her. What happened when she came here?" he asked, with Bilbo trailing behind them, listening with intrigue.

Legolas sighed as he faced forward, the memory clear as day when that woman dropped into Mirkwood.

 _It happened during one of their daily patrols. Normally, it was one of those days where the shadowed forest was quiet, save for the eerie sounds within the trees where the giant spiders reside._

 _All of a sudden, the wind picked up out of nowhere, disturbing the trees and elves that patrolled that part of the forest. The wind became stronger, almost throwing Legolas and his patrol off the branches._

 _Once the wind calmed down, Legolas turned to his patrol to see if they were alright,_ " _ **Everyone alright?"**_ _he asked in elvish, receiving his answer when they either nodded or responded with 'yes.'_

 _Tauriel straightened herself to her full height beside him,_ " _ **That wasn't normal."**_ _she said, feeling something amiss in their already tainted forest._

 _Their ears picked up the sound of spiders moving, keeping alert in case any of those arachnids attacked them. However, to their surprise, the spiders moved passed them, traveling to a different part of the forest. Whatever is causing the spiders to react that way could either be good or bad for Mirkwood._

 _Not wasting any time, Legolas and Tauriel led the patrol in order to trail the spiders and see what has disturbed the forest. After following at a safe distance behind the spiders, their ears picked up the screeching sounds of spiders being slaughtered. Remaining ever quiet with their elven stealth, they peeked through the branches and leaves to see a blonde woman surrounded by spiders._

 _Legolas and his patrol readied their weapons, preparing themselves for another extermination. However, to their astonishment, the blonde woman raised her hands and sent out some kind of magic balls of light at the spiders, making said spiders screech as they were vanquished by her power. Just like that, all the spiders were nothing more than puffs of smoke as they were shrunken down to smash-under-boot size._

 _All the elves watched in wonder as the lone woman walked over to one of the now tiny arachnids and stepped on it casually, panting lightly from her use of power. Cracking her neck, she sighed as she took in her surroundings, trying to figure out which way she should go._

 _She tensed up for a moment before shaking her head as she bent down to pick up a rock. Tossing the rock up in the air before catching it, she tossed it a second time, only this time, she made it vanish in a puff of smoke and crossed her arms and tapped her foot with a bored expression._

 _Legolas and Tauriel turned to each other in question for this woman's actions before they heard a thump behind them. Turning around, they saw the rock that was in the woman's hand earlier, on the the branch behind them. Picking up the rock, Legolas turned it over to see a message etched into it, "'Do you know the direction to the closest town? Also, stop spying, it's creepy.'" he read, making Tauriel giggle lightly under her breath while the other elves either smirked or snickered._

 _Legolas sighed before leaping down from the trees to land in front of the woman who didn't seem all surprised as his patrol surrounded her with their arrows aimed at her. Not wanting to seem like a threat, the blonde woman raised her hands._

" _State your business." Legolas demanded, still holding the rock in his hand, staring at the woman intently._

 _The woman's hazel eyes met his, she looked to be in her early thirties upon closer inspection, yet she also looked young at the same time. "Look, I don't want any trouble, I just need to get to the closest town. Then I can get out of your hair." she attempted to reason with the elves._

" _Where do you hail from?" Legolas questioned, keeping his eyes on the woman as she opened her mouth to answer, but froze when she didn't answer, "I don't know how to answer that one." she said after a pause._

" _Then you're coming with us." Legolas said, before giving out an order in sindarin to one of his guards to bind her hands and cover her eyes. With the woman bound, they led her through the forest toward the realm where she would be imprisoned._

"That's how it happened." Legolas said, finishing his story, "To be perfectly honest, I found your Mother a bit too witty. She also seemed to take everything in stride, even with her imprisonment." Legolas added, his mind still boggled by the idea of the that woman inside his home.

Henry smiled at that, "Not her first time. She has a unique way of dealing with situations like that." he said, before laughing, "She really used a rock to draw you and Tauriel?" he asked, the image fresh in his head as he and Bilbo laughed at the wittiness his Mother seems to throw in even at the worst of times.

Legolas laughed with them, "Aye, ever the witty magical woman she was-is." he quickly corrected himself for Henry's sake, "That's probably what drew Tauriel to her in the first place. Those two seemed to laugh despite the bars that separated them." he said, almost fondly as he thought of his friend's happy expression whenever she would talk to the blonde prisoner.

Henry smiled, "Can't wait to meet Tauriel, she's probably the only person that can give me a clue to where Mom is. Plus, Mom wouldn't confide in anyone for just anything, so their friendship's got to mean something to her." he said, feeling hopeful in the knowledge that the redheaded elf may be the only connection he had to finding his Mother.

They continued the rest of their journey in silence, with the occasional comments as the day wore on. By mid day, as Legolas calculated, the city of Dale came with their sights. Henry couldn't help but admire the vastness of the city from afar, "Amazing." was all he could say as Bilbo and Legolas stood beside him on their horses.

The hobbit and elf smiled at Henry's astounded expression, "It was nothing but ruins a year ago. Now, it is blooming with life thanks to your Mother. Had she not protected the city, it would've been nothing rubble." Bilbo said, making Henry smile, feeling proud of his Mother more and more.

Legolas nodded in agreement, "This is where we must part ways, you can make the rest of the journey without my company." he said, almost sadly, having enjoyed his conversation with the boy.

Henry turned to the elf prince in surprise and asked, "You don't want to say 'hi' to your friend?"

Legolas responded, "Don't misunderstand, I would very much like to give Tauriel my regards. However, my duty comes first, and I can't abandon my responsibilities." he answered with regret.

Henry pursed his lips before nodding, "I understand. I'll give her your regards for you." he offered, making Legolas smile at the gesture before bowing his head to him in respect, "I thank you, **mellon-nin**. I wish you the greatest fortune on your journey, and pray for you to be successful in finding the one you lost." he said, giving Henry his praise.

Henry smiled and bowed in respect as well, "Thank you as well. Please be safe on your journey home." he requested, bidding the elf farewell.

Legolas nodded, "Aye, as you command." he said smiling before directing his horse towards the path home. He turned his head to look behind him, "Farewell, and good luck." was all he said before kicking his horse into a canter, leaving the boy and the hobbit by themselves.

Henry, still smiling softly, turned to an equally smiling Bilbo who asked, "Shall we go?"

Henry replied, "Lead the way." was the signal he gave before Bilbo took the lead as Henry followed not too far behind the hobbit towards Dale.

* * *

 _ **It has been months since my last update, and I have to apologize for my absence. Lost inspiration and motivation for this story, but I came back.**_

 _ **Hope you loved this chapter. In the meantime, drop me a review at the beep.**_

 _ **.**_

 _ **.**_

 _ **.**_

 _ ***BEEP***_


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